Ruth 4:15 (LSB)

Passage

May he also be to you a restorer of your soul and a sustainer of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

Nearby Context

Ruth 4:13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And Yahweh granted her conception, and she gave birth to a son.

Ruth 4:14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed is Yahweh who has not left you without a kinsman redeemer today, and may his name be proclaimed in Israel.

Ruth 4:15 May he also be to you a restorer of your soul and a sustainer of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

Ruth 4:16 Then Naomi took the child and put him on her bosom and became his nurse.

Ruth 4:17 The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "restorer", "soul", "sustainer", "daughter-in-law", "loves", "better", "than", and "seven". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "restorer" and "soul", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "Then the women said to Naomi Blessed..." into verse 16's "Then Naomi took the child and put...", so "restorer" and "soul" belong inside that flow. In Ruth context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "restorer" and "soul" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.